Purpose

I wanted to spend some time writing about WHY I’ve decided to launch this project.

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Reason #1: I LOVE EMERGENCY MEDICINE

There, I said it. Emergency Medicine may not be the most prestigious specialty, but it certainly is the BEST specialty… Here are just a few of the reasons: 1) You will save lives every day. 2) You will have the opportunity (if you keep your brain on) to diagnosis every condition you learned about in medical school. 3) The high acuity means you will never be bored. 4) You will serve the neediest, MOST underserved patients in your community. 5) You will still have a work-life balance that will allow you to explore even MORE business, political, and volunteer opportunities. And 6) every patient you will meet is an undifferentiated, medical puzzle.

Reason #2: THERE WAS NO PODCAST FOR STUDENTS

Is there excellent Emergency Medicine content online? Yes. EM Basic for interns. EM:RAP for attendings, EMCrit for critical care enthusiasts. But nobody had ME as their primary audience. Nobody was explaining EMERGENCY MEDICINE FOR STUDENTS. Sure, I learned some cool stuff, but lots of it was also over my head. Medication doses? Cutting edge therapies? Nitpicking which drugs within the same class edges out the other? You don’t need to know that…. (Yet). You need to MASTER THE BASICS.

Reason #3: WE NEED TO STICK TOGETHER

There is a reason why, at the end of every episode, I ask you to message me. Not only is your feedback incredibly helpful, but it’s because I want to talk to you! I want to hear about you, hear your stories, and hear about the endeavors you are most passionate about. It makes me happy.

This is very important. We need to stick together… Statistically, you are currently the least burned out and the most altruistic that you will ever be during your career. Which is why you are so awesome! Every time I receive an email from you, or talk to one of you on the phone, it gives me energy, helps me stay motivated, and improves my interactions with patients.

I created this podcast so we could go through this together. Together, we can keep each other from deteriorating into jaded, burned out, and stale doctors. What I encourage everybody to do is to MOTIVATE and FOCUS each other on our reasons for being in medicine. Because when we stick together, you help me remember my purpose, and I can help you remember yours…

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So with that said, I hope you find the content useful. I really appreciate your support. At any time, please email me. I would love to chat with you and hear about how medical school is going for you. As always, let me know your feedback. And until next time, keep working hard. Keep studying. And be sure to ENJOY YOUR SHIFT